Reciprocable jaw cap wrench



Aug. 21, 1951 DRAZICK 2,565,212

RECIPROCABLE JAW CAP WRENCH Filed Oct. 23, 1947 INVENTOR John Draz/ck ATTORN EYS Patented Aug. 21, 1951 UNITED- STATES PATENT OF F 1 CE 2,565,212 I RECIPROCABLE. J AW CAP WRENCH John Drazick, Detroit, Mich. Application October 23, 1947;, Serial No. 781,535

Claim 1 This invention relates toa cap gripper, and has particularly to do with a means for opening and closing screw-type covers on Mason jars and other glasscontainers.

It is an object of the invention to furnish a cap gripper which operates in both directions, that is, opens and closes a cap and which is of such simplified construction that it may be manufactured at a low cost.

It is a further object to provide a cap gripper in which the functioning portions are of such a nature that they create a decorative effect on the structure.

It is a further object to provide a cap gripper in which the gripping force increases as the turning force is applied so that slippage is impossible.

Other objects and features of the invention will be apparent in the following description and claims.

Drawings accompany the specification and the various views thereof may be briefly described as:

Figure 1 a plan view of the cap gripper.

Figure 2, a sectional view on line 22 of Figure 1 showing application to a cap.

Figure 3 illustrates the operating plate unassembled.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the gripping aw.

Figure 5 is a partial section on line 5-5 of Figure 1.

The cap gripper consists mainly of three parts, first, a camming plate 2|] with attached handle 22, a jaw-carrying plate 30, and a plurality of gripping jaws 40.

The camming plate 2!] consists of a circular member having a down-turned edge 23 and an annular rib 24 extending around the plate in spaced relation to the edge. Within the annular rib 24 are three camming grooves 25, 2t, and 21, each of which is shaped in plan like a curved V with the apex pointing toward the outside of the plate as shown in Figure 1. These grooves are formed in the plate so that in section they appear as raised portions on the surface of the plate. The adjacent legs of each V-groove are on a common circle with a center located on a bisecting diameter which is on the far side of the center of the plate. In Figure 1 this center for the adjacent legs of grooves 25 and 21 is at the point marked C on a diametric line which passes direct- 1y between the adjacent legs.

The jaw-carrying plate 30 is formed circular in shape to lie within the rim 23 of the cam plate. A locating handle 3| projects radially from the plate and formed in the plate are three radial depressedguideways 35, 36, and 31. These guideways are. spaced 1, 2)-.,apart as are the. cam grooves on the, cam plate! At the outer end of each guideway isan oblong arcuate aperture 38.

The gripper jaws 40, illustrated in Figure 4, consist of a slide portion 4| which lies in the guideways 35, 36, and 31 of plate 39 and a gripper portion 42 which passes through the holes 38 of plate 30 and projects from the under side thereof. Theend of gripper portion 42 is bent around in a projection 43 which has serrations 44 formed thereon on a circle are which has generally the diameter of a Mason cap. The projection 43 is arcuate in section cut parallel to the slide portions to provide strength to the jaw. Formed in the slide portion 4! is a raised portion 45 which is a cam following portion cooperating with cams 25, 26, and 2'! on the cam plate. In assembly the members are placed on the guides 35, 35, and 3''! of actuating plate 30 and the cam plate 20 is placed over the actuating plate and riveted thereto by a rivet 50 passing through the center of both plates. Short tabs 52, 54, 56, and 58 shown in dotted lines in Figure 1 extend from the depressed rim 23 of cam plate 20 over the edges of the actuating plate 30. The edges of the tabs 52 and 54 which are nearest the projection 3|, Figure 1, are located about from the diameter passing through the projection 3|. These tabs serve as a limit stop for the projection 3| so that the raised cam followers 45 never reach the extreme end of the camming grooves.

In operation the cap gripper is placed over a screw-type cap as shown, for example in Figure 2, and the handle 3| on the actuating plate is shifted to the right or left depending on whether the force to be applied to the cap is an opening or a closing force. If it is a closing force, the

handle 3| is moved to the left as viewed in Figure 7 1, and this will carry the cam followers 45 all counterclockwise in the camming grooves, thus shifting the gripper portions inwardly to contact the cap. Application of force to the left on the handle 22 will then place a turning force on the cap and will also continue the inward movement of the gripper portions since the force will be applied through the cam following portions 45., There is thus a multiplication of the gripping force as the turning force is applied to the assembly.

What I claim is:

1. An improved cap gripper of the type having a handle cam plate, sliding jaws, and a j aw-guide plate in which the cam plate is formed as a circular sheet metal piece having an axially extending outer flange on the bottom side and V- shape cam grooves pressed into said plate forming raised V-shaped projections on the top surface of the plate regularly spaced around the plate, the sheet metal jaw-guide plate being received within the flange of the cam plate and having radial guide depressions formed therein to provide recesses between the plates, and the sliding jaws comprising L-shaped sheet-metal members having guide portions to slide in said recesses and gripper portions to extend axially relative to said plates, and cam projections formed on said guide portions extending in a direction opposite to the gripper portions into said cam grooves.

2. An improved cap gripper as described in claim 1 in which tab extensions on the axially extending outer flange of the cam plate extend radially inward to overlie and retain the peripheral edge of the guide plate.

3. An improved cap gripper as described in claim 1 in which the jaw-guide plate has perforations at the ends of the guide recesses through which the gripper portion of each jaw may pass,

and means at the edges of said plates to hold the plates slidably together.

4. An improved cap gripper as described in claim 1 in which the jaw guide plate has perforations at the ends of the guide recesses within the periphery thereof, and tab extensions on the axially extending outer fiange of the cam plate extending radially inward to overlie the periphery of the guide plate to clamp the parts together for relative rotation between the plates.

JOHN DRAZICK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,394,388 Wisenberg Oct. 18, 1921 1,471,353 Pihl Oct. 23, 1923 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 323,578 Germany July 28, 1920 

